A Long Way
by TwilghtEyes85
Summary: Zuko can't believe how far he's come. Oneshot. Set after The Western Air Temple, but before The Firebending Masters


_**Disclaimer: Insert pun here**_

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><p>I could hardly believe the direction my life had taken. Not that I regretted it, I know I'm doing the right thing, but still.<p>

Aang. I had never really thought about him as a person. Dehumanized him, I guess. For three years he had been the force that drove me. An unknown that I had to discover. When I found him, he was a ticket, my ticket, back home.

The Avatar. The boy. I knew his name but never said it. Never even thought it. He was the Avatar, and I had to defeat him.

Not that I ever did. He truly was an amazingly gifted bender. Not unlike my sister in that respect. I had once likened them in frustration, but other than their bending talent they were nothing alike. Aang was compassionate. I should know; I'd used it against him more than once.

He had grown since I'd first met him; he was no longer a carefree boy. That fact was sad in of itself.

Katara. The little Water Tribe Peasant. I had tried to used her necklace against her. I remembered feeling a twinge of guilt when she had said it was her mother's.

Then there had been Ba Sing Se. She had vented her frustration on me, telling me what a horrible person I was. I did not argue with her; she was right. I _had _been horrible. The loss of my own mother seemed to warm her to me, but that had been crushed when I had chosen Azula in the fight that ensued.

Then the threat. I was surprised by the ferocity I had not known to be in her. It fit with her character as I knew it that she would protect those she considered her family, but there had been hatred in her voice. Not that I didn't deserve it.

Sokka. The Water Tribe boy. Not much younger than myself, but still a boy in my mind. He was clever, had talked his way out of a few of my traps. I admired that, it was a good skill. It made up for his lack of bending.

He was the comedian of the group it seemed. He cracked jokes that lighten everyone's mood, including, to my surprise, my own. He was the leading thinker of nicknames for me. He had a million of them. I scowled whenever he used them. I really didn't mind, but I had a reputation to uphold. Aang had chosen 'Sifu Hotman' which annoyed me above all others; Toph called me mostly 'Sparky'.

Toph. The Blind Earth Bender. She had been the first to accept me; probably because she had not been terrorized by my endless pursuit. Even after burning her, literally, she didn't resent me. I felt horrible about it, even if she didn't hold it against me. I would love to spar with her, she would be an interesting opponent. She definitely had the trash talk down. But I didn't think it would be appropriate, not after all the fights I had gotten into with the gang.

I liked her; she was just as headstrong as I was. She would try to include me in the conversation, then Katara would shoot her a glare that she ignored. The others looked awkward, but didn't seem to mind. Mostly I would say a sentence or two then excused myself.

I hoped that the others could accept me as she had, but I didn't really expect them to.

Once, during dinner, they had been talking about their childhood, sharing stories. Toph had some great ones. Katara and Sokka's stories showed how loving their family was. Aang had some good ones too, about a world 100 years gone.

I should have seen it coming, but I didn't.

"Hey Sparky, what was it like growing up?" Toph asked.

Before I could think of something noncommittal to say, Katara rolled her eyes and scoffed.

"Yeah," she said, her voice dripping sarcasm, "must have been hard being pampered."

I just shrugged. I had no desire to argue with her. I started to rise to leave, when Toph used her bending to knock me back down.

"Nope, you're not ditching," she said playfully, "come on, one story. What kind of games did you play as a kid?"

I sighed. "I don't know," I said reluctantly, "I didn't really play around a lot." Toph simply kept staring at me expectantly.

"I didn't," I insisted, "when I did it was usually cause my mom made me play with my sister and her friends. That usually ended up with me soaking wet or on fire or something like that." I rubbed the scar on my arm absently, thinking about when Azula had caught my sleeve alight.

Toph laughed, "Not bad, for a start."

I shrugged, feeling awkward.

Yes, I had come a long way from the pampered Fire Nation Prince. Never would I have imagined that I would be camping with the "Gaang" (I mentally rolled my eyes at this nickname). I had denounced my father, and I was going to help stop the war he waged. These people didn't trust me, and I didn't feel comfortable in their presence, but it felt right. I was doing the right thing, and I _woud_ atone for my sins. For that, I would suffer the awkward moments.

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><p><strong>Zuko is my favorite character, the most complicated. I like being in his head. Let me know if you think the charactization is off. Feedback is great!-TwilightEyes85<strong>


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